It's a classic. It's a definitive name within cruising culture, especially within hip-hop culture. You can have your Maybach, you can have your Rolls, you can have your Hummer or whatever other big expensive vehicle. Give me an Impala, especially the legendary "six-four," the 1964 Impala with its sharp sidelines, flat rear deck and iconic round tail lights.
Those who would agree with the above statements would hesitate to say give me an "o-four." After the death of the hot-rod Impala SS of the early-mid 90's, and following resurrection of the Impala as a quaint family sedan, the Impala name had lost some of its tough, cool aura. But a new day has dawned. A new body has been erected. Smooth curves replaced a not-quite-right angular 3-box sedan whose saving grace was those iconic round taillights. Expanded dimensions have added great road presence. It's a great road present. The present Impala embodies the American road-owning personality Chevy sedans were once endowed with. The Impala rides again.
There is great continuity and fluidity to the new Impala's exterior design, from the rounded profile of the front fascia to a flatter curve over the convex hood, which smoothly but quickly changes concavity as it gives way in transition to the windshield. The roof flows into the rear glass and onto a slightly rounded decklid. The head-on profile is slightly rounded.
The Impala is not an intense, aggressive looking vehicle. It does not have particularly short overhangs or compact proportions. It is designed around interior accommodations, grace, and road presence. It accomplishes these goals well.
Inside, a design as simple yet attractive as the exterior is found. A mostly plastic but textured interior looks elegant in charcoal and black, and a strip of wood laid across the dash livens things up a bit. This interior might not look so good in tan, but in black it is supreme. The gauges look like Chevy saved a couple of bucks on each instrument cluster, but they are a different design than the industry standard. EVERYBODY has "chrome"-rimmed gauges, but the Impala features a silver coating only on the inside of the ring that surrounds each gauge, and the rings are set into the plastic so they are flush with the major surface. This black with silver lining look appears more functional than the more expensive designs, and the way the lights reflect off these rings is attractive and unique; it's an inexpensive look, but it works. The gear selector below the center console is very clean. A shiny piece of plastic surrounds the plastic moving parts below the leather-clad lever. There are neither lights nor set letters with a moving indicator bar attached to the bottom of the gear selector to tell the driver what gear they are in - the indicator is displayed by LEDs in the instrument cluster. Thus, the base of the gear selector is very clean - albeit, again, inexpensive - and attractively symmetrical. This interior is a good effort from GM.
The center armrest is deep, and it features a good level of compartmentalization. There is also a removable insert which allows you to store larger items. In front of the armrest is a small cubby hole with a swiveling arm that clicks into a variety of positions for a semi-secure holding of a variety of cup sizes from itty-bitty to extra super duper big.
The seats don't offer much lateral support, but they are properly cushioned, with a good balance between back and bottom support and softness. There is a ratcheting adjuster on the side of the front seats to bring the lumbar support forward, which is a great feature for long drives. Unfortunately, the fully "zeroed out" lumbar, at its minimal amount of intrusion into your back, is still too much support. You don't quite get a flat seatback. Perhaps Chevy is trying to improve the average posture of American drivers; we complain because we like to slouch on occasion.
The interaction with controls gives the kind of feel one would expect from the feel and look of the inside and outside of the new Impala. The steering is numb, the brakes are soft, and everything moves very smoothly. This all makes for a very comfortable, enjoyable ride. You get in, you start up the V6 and enjoy a well-insulated rumble, ease the lever back into "D," pull off the brakes and roll on the throttle, smoothly navigate your street machine left and right, start and stop with grace. When you get a performance urge, you may enjoy this on some levels – you get a little Dr. Dre in you; “I burn double peelout, check it out, it’s me now” - but don't dream of taking it to the track. Any car can be fun when you learn to utilize its characteristics. The smoothness of the Impala makes it fun to drift on level and uphill corners, but the weight coupled with the soft suspension make it uncomfortable in downhill and undulating corners. The Impala loses touch with the asphalt when you speed over a rise, and the numb steering makes it a little tougher to tell when the front wheels stop tracking - a better indicator is watching the front end drift outside your intended line.
The suspension up front is handled by struts. The front anti-sway bar tries to keep the nose close to level so as to provide more uniform grip between the two steering wheels while in a corner. The rear suspension features a trailing arm tri-link setup. A straight, adjustable, transverse rear stabilizer bar, which mounts to each rear wheel hub directly, is standard on all models. The lack of an actual anti-sway bar in the rear adds greatly to body roll but also adds to stable handling. You will not get snap oversteer in this car. The rear end comes out smoothly, and somewhat predictably. In the slalom, you can't get out of line, because of the amount of energy storage this suspension allows; once you exceed your balanced slalom speed the rear end will start to hang out, and it takes too long for the energy to be released. It is smooth and predictable, but it's tough to quickly correct. So, the key is to drive it right. When knocking out a series of esses, be smooth - don't rock the boat!
The greatest thing about the handling package is the Impala’s stunning 13.3:1 steering ratio. That’s just crazy for a big car like this. Some sports cars have a wider ratio than the Impala. Certainly, within the limitations of the soft suspension and resulting long transient periods, the steering provides very direct output from your input. This makes lane changes snappy, and turning around in tight spaces a breeze. For an urban family hauler, this tight steering ratio is one of the Impala’s best features.
The disappointing thing about the standard Impala we drove was the drivetrain. It is smooth, just like everything else, but it pretty well lacks guts. The V6 is weak, proving ok off-the-line response but dying out up top. What's worse is the gears are too wide, so that once you pass the torque peak in second gear - below freeway speed - the acceleration is largely over. Variable valve timing is part of the package, and the 3.9-liter V6 adds a variable intake manifold to provide custom-tailored airflow management for different rpm, but a still-better intake manifold or some revised heads to help this engine breathe easier would be much appreciated.
The funny thing is, the Impala offers more standard power than just about any comparable car. The base 3.5-liter V6, with 211 horsepower, is stronger than some Japanese large sedan top engine options. The difference is largely the lack of a 5th gear.
To be fair, too, the Impala’s base motor has more than enough torque to spin the front wheels in a variety of situations, even considering the Impala's weight. It has enough grunt to get you around town, up a steep hill with a load of people and their gear, and to pass on the freeway without much ado. This is not a performance car, it's a cruiser; the drivetrain is pretty quiet, so it makes for a relaxing ride. No transmission ride chimes in when you're bumpin' some Dre Rides Again on the decent stock stereo, and you enjoy the ride. If you want more performance, step up and get a 303hp Impala SS.
And what’s more, the safety package on the Impala makes this a very worthwhile family sedan. It has traction control and ABS, standard, of course. But it offers seatbelt pretensioners with now increased pull-back force for better pre-crash safety. The standard side curtain airbags are a nearly unique base-offering. The only thing missing, which at least one competitor offers as standard, is in-seat side-impact airbags.
The Impala is a good car. The design is good. The materials are inexpensive but are put together well enough, and in black the interior looks great. There is tons of room for your head, your bottom, your left and right, and your legs. The trunk is big enough for a mafia to hold a week's worth of bodies, plus the boss's golf clubs. Or, if you prefer underwater adventures, you can fill up on scuba gear easily for 4. It's not an exciting car, but the sum of things is good - as long as the price is right.
Well, how's $20,330 for a 3.5L, 211 horsepower V6 and lots of room sound to you? Or howabout $25,830 for the top-end LTZ model, complete with the variable valve timing-equipped 3.9 liter V6, which is good for 240 horsepower? Would you take this over a Camry or an Accord? What about a base-level Charger or 300? You can get a super basic Camry for less, but that runs on a motor with about 25% less power. The Impala’s design is not nearly as attractive as Chrysler’s offerings, but the simple, clean, relaxed look does have a lot of appeal. From 1999-2004, Chevy sold 1.25 million Impalas, and sales were up in 2004 versus 2003. Not bad. Now, the new Impala is even better – looking, performing, comforting, and life-saving. This is a nice, relaxed ride. Just what you need to take you home. In the words of Dr. Dre (er, a modern interpretation of an old slave song) – “Swing down, sweet chariot, and let me ride.”
